Pickpocketing Love
by Roselilia
Summary: Resorting to pick pocketing in order to survive, Kuroko accidentally pickpockets the wrong person and ends up with more than just a wallet. Slight AU AkaKuro
1. Pickpocketing a Home

Kuroko was a pickpocketer. He was really good at pickpocketing. Hell he could argue that he was born to do it. He was born with the unfortunate gift of invisibility. Well almost. It wasn't that he was actually invisible but people just never seemed to notice him.

He could stand right in front of someone and they wouldn't notice that he was right in front of him. It was lonely. Even his own parents forgot they had a kid. How a woman could carry him for 9 months and go through labor just to forget about him was beyond him but that was how it was.

As it was, his parents were busy people so he rarely saw them. They were abroad most of the time which Kuroko preferred because at least then they had a reason not to talk to him. It was painful when they were home and didn't notice him. Instead he was taken care of by his grandma who seemed to be the only one who remembered his existence. If it hadn't been for her then Kuroko would have questioned his very existence.

But then she had gotten sick. As he got older she got sicker and sicker until one day she had died. Kuroko hadn't even noticed at first he had thought she was taking a nap but then he realized that she wasn't breathing. It was hard and Kuroko cried for days unsure how to survive.

His parents didn't remember him most of the time so he didn't have a lot of money even though his parents were actually quite wealthy. He didn't really know how to cook since his grandma hadn't had time to teach him.

That was when he began pickpocketing. It was so easy. No one ever noticed him and all he had to do was dip his hand in a pocket and snatch their wallets. It wasn't an honest living but it was the only way to get by. He was careful to only steal from those who wore expensive clothes or had bad attitudes.

In a way, in a really petty way, he felt like he was getting back at people who were like his parents. Rich and treated the people around them like dirt. Still he would only steal when he absolutely needed too. He knew he could easily steal more than enough money so he could live comfortably but his guilt kept him from doing so. He rationed his money carefully and bought cheap meals from convenience stores. He was lucky that he didn't have a large appetite.

Sometimes he would go through their wallets and looked at pictures that were sometimes in them. He tried to imagine what kind of lives they lived and what their families were like. Sometimes he would make up lives for the people in the pictures.

Kuroko sipped his vanilla shake and made his way to the park. He hated being home alone so he would often stay out and watch people play basketball in the courts. He loved basketball but he absolutely sucked at it. He couldn't shoot and he wasn't very fast.

Although every so often when he was particularly bored he would screw with the players by stealing the ball and passing it to random people. It was comedic to watch the players gawk at the ball since to them it had magically switched directions.

When Kuroko arrived at the park there were two teams playing against each other. It was an intense match and both teams were giving it their all. They were drenched in sweat but they played with large smiles on their faces.

'It must be nice to be a part of a team. Depending on each other and everyone having an important role.' Kuroko thought wistfully as he watched two people bump fists after a spectacular pass and dunk. The match was over quickly since it was getting dark but everyone seemed happy even the losing team.

Kuroko watched them leave the court laughing amongst themselves. Shaking his head Kuroko stood up and left the park. His stomach grumbled and he sighed as he realized that he was out of money.

Pickpocketing time.

He walked over to the mall in search for his next victim. The mall was packed since it was a friday night and Kuroko had no problem picking out who to pickpocket. He didn't really pay attention to his looks all he saw was an expensive looking suit that was completely out of place in such a casual setting. He saw the subtle rectangular bulge in a pocket and went in for the kill.

What should have happened was he would dip his hand into the pocket and swiftly grab the wallet then leave undetected. He had done it a million times and never once had he been caught. So it came to complete shock when a hand gripped his wrist before he could snag the wallet.

Kuroko was swung around and he found himself staring into irritated heterochromatic eyes one being a brilliant ruby red the other being a blazing yellow. Kuroko's breath caught in his throat as he was actually stared at. Someone was actually seeing him.

How long had it been since someone had actually seen him?

The boy had blood red short hair, his face fixed in a scowl that melted into mild fascination and he was only slightly taller than Kuroko himself who knew he was small for someone his age. Kuroko also got the distinct feeling that he managed to mess with a dangerous person. This person oozed power.

'Of all the people to notice me.' Kuroko thought with exasperation as the boy began to tug him away. He didn't bother to struggle when he was led out of the mall since the hand on his wrist was too strong to break out of.

"What's your name?" The boy demanded as he all but threw Kuroko into a car that already had someone sitting by the wheel. Akashi sat beside him and demanded the driver to take him home.

"Kuroko Tetsuya." He replied softly as he stared at his lap feeling a trickle of fear. If anything happened to him would anyone even notice? "I'm sincerely sorry about earlier."

"My name is Akashi Seijuro and I'm afraid that I cannot simply dismiss your actions. We will deal with the consequences when we reach my home." Kuroko sighed and nodded. His fear grew when the car stopped in front of a huge house. Just who exactly did he anger?

He followed Akashi into the house and through the maze of hallways until he entered an office like room. He sat down in front of a large office desk while Akashi sat on the other side.

"I would like to call your parents so we can come to a suitable agreement on how to settle this." Kuroko hesitated before he gave Akashi his mother's phone number. She was the most likely to remember him.

He fidgeted as Akashi dialed the number and put the phone on speaker so Kuroko could hear the conversation. The phone rang for a bit before a feminine voice finally picked up. Kuroko felt a bit startled when he heard a voice that should have felt familiar to him but was for all intents and purposes was just the voice of a stranger.

"Hello this is Akashi Seijuuro and I'm here with your son Kuroko Tetsuya." Akashi greeted and there was a pause on the other end of the line.

"Oh right, him." His mother said after a while and Kuroko saw Akashi raise an eyebrow. "Well, what did you want?"

"Well earlier your son tried to pickpocket me. Had he been successful he would have stolen nearly 500 dollars from me." Akashi replied and Kuroko looked at the phone in faint interest. He idly wondered how his parents would react when they found out what he had resorted to in order to survive. There was another long pause before his mother responded.

"Well why did you call me?" His mother asked and Akashi frowned.

"Well I was hoping to come to an agreement on how to settle this." Akashi answered slowly.

"Well why call me and not the police?" His mother snapped impatiently and this time both of Akashi's eyebrows rose. Kuroko softly sighed and leaned back into his chair in resignation. He honestly didn't know what he had expected.

"Well, I was hoping we could get around this without involving the authorities." Akashi replied.

"What do you propose then?" His mother asked with annoyance.

"I was thinking of having your son work for me until I have deemed the amount he would have stolen repaid." Akashi said and Kuroko made sure none of the surprise he felt showed on his face.

"That sounds reasonable is there anything else? I'm a busy woman you see."

"I was hoping that for the duration of him working for me that he would stay at me home for convenience."

"That's fine with me." His mother replied before hanging up abruptly. Akashi stared at the phone before he hung up as well.

"Your mother is an interesting person." Akashi commented wryly and Kuroko nodded in agreement.

"You mentioned that I would work for you. What would you like me to do?" Kuroko asked and Akashi gave him an amused look.

"You seem awfully accepting of everything."

"I did you wrong so I accept my punishment." Kuroko replied and Akashi chuckled as he folded his hands together and rested his head on top of them.

"You will stay in the room beside mine and act as my personal servant. Anything I want you to do you will do it. You will go to school with me and come home with me." Akashi said and Kuroko fought a frown. That didn't sound hard at all. He had expected to be dumped with a million chores.

"Will that be all?" Kuroko asked hesitantly and Akashi looked at him. It wasn't a normal look; it was a look that went straight through Kuroko as if Akashi was attempting to read his mind.

"You go to Teiko correct?" Kuroko nodded. "I want you to join the Teiko basketball team." Kuroko almost jolted in surprise.

"I'm afraid I don't understand." Kuroko said softly.

"It's very simple. I am the coach and I want you to join." Akashi said with a hint of amusement.

"I'm not very good at basketball." Kuroko replied and Akashi smirked at him.

"I don't believe that's entirely true." Akashi stood up and sauntered in front of Kuroko. He gripped the chair arms and leaned in close. Kuroko swallowed nervously and leaned as far back as he could. "I believe you hold a special ability that only you have."

"Special ability?" Kuroko repeated and Akashi nodded.

"I am right in front of you, looking at you," Kuroko's breath hitched as Akashi's gaze became even more intense. "Yet I can't sense you at all. I've seen you around Teiko before and I know nobody notices you because of your lack of presence."

"You've noticed me?" Kuroko asked in slight amazement and Akashi chuckled.

"Yes, I find you quite fascinating actually. I think you're a very special person Tetsuya." Akashi purred and Kuroko felt himself breathing slightly harder than usual. This was the first time someone had actually noticed him. This was the first time someone had called him special. Just who was this boy?

"I will join the team." Kuroko finally said and Akashi nodded and moved away from Kuroko.

"As I knew you would. Now follow me and I will show you to your room." Akashi announced and Kuroko took a split second to gather his bearings before he followed Akashi once again through the maze of hallways. He noticed servants bustling around only pausing to politely bow to Akashi.

"This is my room." Akashi said as he pointed to a door. "This room will be yours. I will lend you the clothes you will need for now until you go home and collect your own tomorrow. We're almost the same size so it shouldn't be an issue."

"Thank you Akashi-kun." Kuroko said politely before he retired to his room. It was a simple room, probably a guest room, it had all the necessities. It had a large bed, a desk, wardrobe and closet but was bare of anything else.

Kuroko sat on the bed and bowed his head. Just what did he get himself into?

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.

A/N Is it just me or does the word pickpocket start to look weird if you stare at it long enough? Anyway the next chapter shouldn't be take too long this will only be a two shot or three shot story.


	2. Pickpocketing a Team

Unbeta'd so sorry for any mistakes.

* * *

'It wasn't a dream.' Was Kuroko's first thought when he opened his eyes. He was still in the room that Akashi had given him last night.

Kuroko rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he stood up and walked over to the wardrobe. He quickly changed into the spare school uniform Akashi had given him and was pleased to see that it was a decent fit. It wasn't too noticeably big on him at all it was just slightly baggy.

Kuroko had just finished changing when there was a knock on the door.

"Good morning Tetsuya." Akashi greeted him with a faint smile.

"Good morning Akashi-kun." Kuroko replied.

"Breakfast should be ready." Akashi said and Kuroko nodded before he followed Akashi to a large dining room where two breakfasts awaited. It was a simple typical Japanese breakfast but Kuroko found his stomach growling. It had been so long since he had an actual home cooked meal.

"Itadakimasu." They both said before they began eating.

"Won't your parents mind me being here?" Kuroko asked and Akashi's eyes sharpened.

"I rarely see them since they are both extremely important people. I doubt they will even notice that you're here." Akashi replied and Kuroko's eyes softened a little.

"I know how that is my parents are the same." Kuroko replied softly as he kept his eyes on his bowl. He felt Akashi look at him curiously and he knew the redhead was thinking of the phone conversation yesterday.

"This brings me to question why you tried to pick my pocket yesterday. I did a little research last night on your parents and they're fairly well off so surely it wasn't out of necessity. Did I do something to offend you?" Kuroko lowered his head so his hair covered his face as he pondered his answer.

"You didn't do anything to offend me. I didn't target you specifically, if it hadn't been you it would have been someone else," Kuroko hesitated before continuing. "My parents are rich but they often forget they have a son. Every once in a while one of them will remember and send me some money but it's very rare so I had to resort to other means to getting money."

"Why not simply get a job?" Akashi asked.

"I tried but nobody wanted to hire someone with such a lack of presence." Kuroko replied trying to keep the bitterness from his voice.

"Well it's not like that's a problem anymore." Akashi said smugly and Kuroko looked at him in confusion.

"I don't understand." Kuroko said and Akashi gave him an endearing smile as if he was about to explain something obvious.

"Well, in a way you're employed to me now. Until I deem that you've paid your debt you work for me. Anything you need, food, clothes or things you want I will get for you and just add it on to the debt. You will live here and rent will just be included in your debt," Akashi leaned in close to Kuroko who was too surprised to move away. "In other words Tetsuya, until I decide otherwise, I own you."

Kuroko was a master at keeping his emotions hidden behind an emotionless mask but even he couldn't keep the surprise off his face. He knew he should feel outraged that he was trapped but he couldn't figure out what was so wrong with that.

It wasn't like it was a huge sacrifice. He wasn't being asked to do a lot, at least not yet, and he got free meals and a place to stay. He wouldn't have to pick pockets anymore. But most importantly, Kuroko decided as he looked into Akashi's intent eyes, he wasn't alone anymore. A small smile appeared on his lips and Kuroko looked down at his now empty bowl.

"I think that's very reasonable." Kuroko said and Akashi chuckled before he placed a hand on Kuroko's head. Kuroko unintentionally flinched. He wasn't used to human contact after being without it for so long. Akashi ignored the flinch instead he leaned even closer so his mouth was right by Kuroko's ear.

"I think we're going to get along just fine, Tetsuya." Akashi purred and Kuroko quickly bowed his head when he felt his face get warm. How was he supposed to react?

Before he could figure it out Akashi jumped out of his seat and urged Kuroko to do the same.

"We should go and get your stuff from your home. I don't expect you to be there for a long time." Akashi announced and Kuroko nodded. As they left the room and made their way out of the house Kuroko noticed Akashi had a thoughtful look on his face. "It was nice not eating alone for once."

Akashi's voice was wistful and Kuroko nodded in agreement. Something told him that even if the food had been from a convenience store it still would have tasted better because he wasn't alone. There was just something about eating with someone that suddenly made the food seem more special.

The driver was already in the car when they arrived making Kuroko illogically wonder if he actually lived in the car. Kuroko gave the driver his address as they got in.

"So what did you think of my home?" Akashi asked as the driver began to drive to where Kuroko told him to go.

"I think it's big and fancy but it must be even more lonely living by yourself." Kuroko answered honestly and Akashi looked at him with an expression he couldn't read.

"We're not so different from each other are we?" Akashi said with a small smile and Kuroko shook his head as he gazed out the window.

When they arrived at his home Kuroko felt the familiar feeling of loathing he got whenever he saw it. It wasn't a bad looking house. It was modest and it looked to be of comfort but Kuroko hated the feeling of loneliness he got whenever he entered the darkened house.

Kuroko entered the house with Akashi who sauntered inside as if he owned the place. Kuroko didn't mind instead he made a beeline to his room to pack leaving Akashi to explore. He packed up his textbooks and clothes first into a suitcase before he turned to the huge pile of books he owned.

He owned hundreds of books mostly from his father's study that he didn't use anymore. He loved to read and it made time go by quick so he didn't even notice that he was alone. Reading was his escape from life. But he couldn't very well bring all of them to Akashi's home.

"Somehow, I'm not surprised to see that you're a bookworm." Kuroko jumped and turned to see Akashi right behind him. Another thing that he was very much not used too; people sneaking up on him.

"Please don't sneak up behind me." Kuroko said and Akashi gave him a smug look before he turned his attention back to the books.

"I have almost all these books at the library at home." Akashi informed Kuroko before he started sorting through the books, occasionally putting a book into Kuroko's suitcase.

"You have a library at home?" Kuroko asked, pleased with the prospect. Akashi gave him another smug look before he stood up.

"Of course! Those books in the suitcase are the ones I don't think I have and if you want more books that aren't in my library just let me know and I will order them." Akashi informed him before he moved to Kuroko's desk to examine a picture. "Who's this?"

Kuroko looked at the picture even though he already knew what was in it. It was a picture of his grandma, one of the few that were taken just before she died. Kuroko looked at it fondly before he put it in his suitcase.

"My grandma." Kuroko replied before he closed the suitcase and turned to Akashi who was examining him carefully.

"There are no signs of anyone living here except for you." Akashi said carefully as if measuring his words out.

"She died." Kuroko replied shortly before he made his way out of the room with Akashi following him.

"My condolences." Akashi said sincerely and Kuroko nodded his acceptance. Kuroko put his suitcase into the car and they both got in. Kuroko expected them to both go home so he was surprised when Akashi ordered the driver to take them to the school.

"I have some people I want you to see." Akashi explained when he saw the confused look in Kuroko's eyes. "They will be your new teammates."

"The basketball team?" Kuroko questioned and Akashi nodded with a pleased smirk.

"They usually have practice on Saturday mornings and I want you to watch them and get a feel for their playing style."

"I didn't realize the gym was open during the weekends." Kuroko said and Akashi gave him a mischievous look.

"I talked to the principle and he agreed to let us practice whenever we wanted." Akashi replied.

When they arrived Kuroko heard the familiar sound of basketballs hitting the gym floor and the squeak of shoes running. There was competitive shouting and the swishing of basketball hoops. Kuroko found himself walking faster until he reached the door and peered inside.

Inside the first and second strings were practising. Some were having mini practice matches while others were individually doing drills.

"That's Aomine Daiki." Akashi pointed and Kuroko saw a dark skinned boy swiftly avoid a block. He had short dark blue hair and a competitive grin on his face. He was fast and was good at making dunks and Kuroko watched as he broke a hoop by accidently putting too much power on it. Akashi muttered under his breath about how that was his third hoop now and his training would be doubled.

"That's Midorima Shintaro." Kuroko looked just in time to see a tall green haired man make a half-court shot. The ball sailed high in the sky and before it had even went into the hoop the boy had turned around and raised his glassed with his hand, his green eyes filled with pride.

"That's Kise Ryouta." A blonde haired boy that Kuroko could have sworn he saw on a page of a magazine streaked down the court. Someone moved to block him but using the exact movement, albeit at a slower pace, as Aomine had before Kise moved around him and dunked the ball.

"And that's Atsushi Murasakibara." A player moved to make a shoot the ball but before it could reach the hoop a huge hand belonging to a purple haired giant slammed it back down. He was almost twice as big as Kuroko.

"They are what you probably heard of as the Generation of Miracles and will be your new teammates." Akashi said and Kuroko turned to him.

"As I said before I am not good at basketball however much I may love it." Kuroko said. Akashi gave him an evaluating look.

"In conventional terms, yes you completely suck at basketball and have no hopes in playing it," Akashi said bluntly. "But if you were to ignore the established way of playing and create your own way of playing I believe you could become a secret weapon."

"You mean make my own way of playing using my lack of presence?" Kuroko questioned and Akashi gave a pleased nod.

"I think you can figure it out on your own but I will give you another hint; instead of focusing on what you can't do try to figure out what you can do for the team." Kuroko looked at Akashi with surprise. The redhead patted his head before he led them back to the car. "I want you to figure it out by Monday. We'll have a practice match to show them what you can do."

"You're sure I can do it by then?" Kuroko murmured and Akashi gave him a small smile that made Kuroko suddenly feel warm.

"I have the utmost confidence in you, Tetsuya."

* * *

Kuroko looked around the library in Akashi's home. It had a lot more books than his father's study did which pleased Kuroko immensely. There were books on everything and of every genre. Kuroko slowly weaved through the shelves until something caught his attention.

It was a book on magic tricks. He didn't know what compelled him to but he took the book and flipped it open to a random page and read the chapter title.

Misdirection.

* * *

Kuroko was undeniably nervous. It was Monday; the day he was going to be put to the test. Throughout all his classes he kept fidgeting and couldn't pay attention to a thing the teachers were saying. It was one of the rare times he was glad the teachers never noticed him or he would have gotten scolded.

He wasn't even sure if the play style would work. He hadn't had the chance to actually put the theory to work which also meant he hadn't had the chance to perfect it. When he had confided that to Akashi all the redhead did was pat him on the head.

Honestly though if he could get this to work it would change his entire life. He had spent his entire life cursing his lack of presence so for someone to actually say it could be a blessing was a huge deal for him. He was overjoyed by the prospect of his lack of presence actually allowing him to play something he loved. But it all hinged on if he could pass the test.

By the time school was over Kuroko was a nervous wreck. Even though his face remained expressionless his hands shook in both nervousness and anticipation. When he arrived at the gym everyone was already beginning practice. Looking around Kuroko saw the Generation of Miracles gathering Akashi.

Kuroko joined them unnoticed by everyone except for Akashi who smirked slightly making the rest of the group anxious making Kuroko wonder just what kind of coach Akashi was.

"Today someone named Kuroko Tetsuya will be taking a test I planned to join the basketball team. If he passes I plan to immediately make him a regular." Akashi said and everyone looked surprised except for Murasakibara who was too busy munching on his chips to pay much attention.

"Well where is he?" Aomine asked impatiently as he looked around.

"Yeah he must be good if you scouted him!" Kise said excitedly.

"I'm right here." Kuroko announced and he watched in amusement as everyone jumped and looked around. Akashi shook his head as he sauntered to Kuroko and through an arm around the smaller boy. Kuroko fought a reflexive flinch and gave Akashi a disgruntled look.

"How long have you been there?!" The rest of the team shouted when they finally noticed him.

"I've been here the whole time." Kuroko said blandly as he shrugged of Akashi's arm.

"Eh? You're Kuroko?" The giant asked as he crouched down and ruffled Kuroko's hair. Kuroko's eye twitched slightly.

"Please stop doing that." Kuroko asked.

"I didn't even notice you!" Kise said with bewilderment.

"Can I be the one to test him?" Aomine asked as he leaned close to Kuroko to examine him. Kuroko fidgeted uncomfortably. He wasn't used to all this attention.

"It will be a different sort of test but you will be a part of it." Akashi said before he gestured to five second string players to come over. "I want to have a practice match with you five against Kuroko and Aomine."

"Whoa! I'm good but not quite that good!" Aomine said incredulously before he looked at Kuroko. "Just how good of a player are you?"

"I'm horrible at shooting, blocking and I'm not very fast." Kuroko replied and saw everyone but Akashi sweatdrop.

"Useless."Midorima said with obvious disinterest.

"Maybe I should help out." Kise said nervously, flinching when Akashi gave him a glare.

"You will do as a say," Akashi ordered in a voice that left no room for argument. He led the others to sit on the bench to watch the match while Aomine scratched his head. "The first team to reach 30p wins."

"Just try to stay out of the way." He finally said with resignation and Kuroko smirked.

"Please lend me your strength and I will be your shadow." Kuroko said and Aomine gave him a weird look.

The game started off quickly. Aomine was really fast and he went all out right away. Kuroko meanwhile tested out his lack of presence. Coupled with Aomine stealing all the attention everyone seemed to have forgotten he was even there.

He weaved through players watching for any reaction and was pleased when everyone continued to ignore him. He watched Aomine play and was impressed. He was even better than Kuroko thought but he was beginning to get in trouble.

No matter how good a player someone is five against one was impossible. When Aomine began to struggle Kuroko finally put his new play style to the test. Misdirection.

The other team had the ball and it was really easy to snatch the ball and pass it to Aomine undetected. The reaction was comedic. The player who had the ball before it was stolen stared at his hands in utter confusion while Aomine stared at the ball like he couldn't figure out how it got there in the first place. It took an entire second to figure out the ball was actually there before he jumped and shot the ball into the hoop.

The other team murmured to themselves wondering how it happened. Snickering to himself Kuroko continued to steal and pass the ball to Aomine who eventually caught on to what was happening. He gave a wide grin to Kuroko as they began to sync their play styles.

It was exhilarating. Kuroko felt adrenaline run through his body and he felt his heart beating faster than ever. He was getting tired since he wasn't use to so much physical activity but he was happier than he had ever been before. It was working. He had some use.

They won the game by a landslide. Kuroko was panting and covered in sweat but he was so happy that he couldn't help but smile softly to himself. Aomine walked over to him and raised a fist. Kuroko looked at it in slight confusion before he smiled and raised his own fist to bump Aomine's.

"Good job Testu." Aomine said and Kuroko gave him a shaky smile. He felt his eyes water a little so he looked away. A hand landed on his shoulder and he looked to see Akashi looking at him with pride.

"That was so cool!" Kise shouted before he glomped Kuroko who fell over from the weight. "How did you do that Kurokocchi?"

"You're going to hurt him." Midorima said with disdain and Kise got up while scratching the back of his head bashfully.

"So did I pass the test?" Kuroko asked Akashi who snorted elegantly. How one could snort elegantly was beyond him but Akashi managed it.

"Of course. You're now officially a part of the team." Kuroko's heart skipped a beat and he hid his face with his hair so nobody could see the look of absolute joy that was on his face. A hand suddenly grabbed his and he found himself being dragged out of the gym.

"Come on we have to celebrate!" Aomine said as he continued to drag Kuroko away not noticing the icy glare Akashi was giving their joined hands. Kise ran to join them while Akashi, Midorima and Murasakibara followed at a more sedated pace.

A few minutes later Kuroko found himself standing outside of a large convenience store with a blue popsicle in his hand surrounded by the rest of the team. Everyone else had a blue popsicle as well except for Murasakibara who had a whole box of them.

"I was so surprised Kurokocchi! I didn't know someone could play that way!" Kise gushed.

"Kuroko-cchi?" Kuroko question and Kise gave him a wide grin while Midorima rolled his eyes.

"Yeah I add 'cchi' to those I consider a friend!" Kise explained and Kuroko tilted his head.

"We're friends?" Kuroko asked and winced when Aomine suddenly smacked him from behind.

"Of course! We're all friends now!" Aomine said with a wide grin.

"That's right Kuro-chin." Murasakibara said as he leaned down to ruffle Kuroko's hair again. Kuroko sidestepped to avoid the hand which brought him closer to Akashi who smirked.

"You're much better replacement than the last guy." Midorima commented and everyone's mood seemed to darken slightly even Akashi's.

"Replacement?" Kuroko questioned and Akashi sighed.

"We had a player who was too violent. I had to ask him to quit." Akashi replied with a small frown.

"I like Kurokocchi much better!" Kise said loudly and Aomine nodded his agreement.

"Well Kuroko and I must be getting home." Akashi announced.

"You two go home with each other?" Midorima asked with a raised green eyebrow.

"Because of certain circumstances, Kuroko is currently staying at my place." Akashi replied before he began to walk away before anyone could question him further.

"Thank you for the popsicle." Kuroko said with a small bow before he quickly followed Akashi. He heard the rest of the team start chatting amongst themselves about what Akashi had said.

"Was it really okay to let them know that?" Kuroko asked and Akashi gave a slight shrug.

"I see nothing wrong with letting them know." Akashi replied. Kuroko nodded and the two fell into a comfortable silence. He jumped when he felt Akashi grab his hand.

"Akashi-kun?" Kuroko hesitantly asked and Akashi gave him a smug look.

"You didn't mind when Aomine held your hand." Was the redhead's reply and Kuroko frowned in confusion.

"You didn't strike me as one who likes touching people." Kuroko said and Akashi gave him an unreadable look before he pulled Kuroko to a stop.

"I don't like touching people," Akashi said slowly and his lips curled into a confident smirk. "But for some reason I like touching you."

"I don't understand." Kuroko said cautiously and he felt his cheeks heat up when Akashi leaned in so close their faces was nearly touching.

"What I'm trying to say is you're special Tetsuya." Akashi purred and Kuroko's breath caught and his heart skipped a beat.

"What are you doing to me?" Kuroko breathed softly and Akashi cupped Kuroko's cheek. Suddenly he felt lips on his own. It was a soft chaste kiss and it was over before Kuroko could even fully register what was happening. With a soft smile Akashi began to tug Kuroko back to walking home.

"You are mine Tetsuya." Akashi said possessively.

* * *

Later that night Kuroko was curled on his bed staring at his grandma's picture. So much had happened in such little time. His entire life had changed because of one person. He had a place where he actually belonged. He didn't have to steal anymore.

He still didn't understand why Akashi had done so much for him. It wasn't normal to help someone who had tried to steal from you. Kuroko thought of the kiss and curled up tighter when a blush immediately appeared on his face.

Neither of them had it brought it up again mostly because Kuroko didn't know how to bring it up. What did Akashi mean by that kiss? Was he just playing with him? Kuroko rubbed his face in an attempt to make the blush disappear.

He looked at the picture again and a tear suddenly fell from his face.

'I think I'm going to be okay grandma.' Kuroko thought for the first time. He put the picture on the bed stand beside his bed before he turned off the light. For the first time in his life he felt content.

* * *

This chapter was kinda hard to write. I'm not used to writing so many people at once so hopefully I did an alright job. I'm sorry if the story is a bit slow paced I tried to make it faster but I don't think I did too good of a job on that.

Also for anyone who's confused with Kuroko's personality since I know he's a bit more emotional that in the anime/manga, I tried to blend the Kuroko from Teiko and the current Kuroko together. He was more emotional before the generation of miracle changed but I wanted him to have a bit of a cold edge because he hasn't exactly had a good life.

The next chapter should be the last unless it gets too long.


End file.
